Prague 2002
Standing in the aisle of the run down theatre, Buffy faced her enemies. Angelus was centre stage, typical of the egomaniac,
Drusilla to his left. Drusilla clearly disconcerted with Buffy’s arrival, clutched the Codex to her breast.
Spike was to the left of Angelus. When Buffy spared him a glance, her seditious heart skipped a beat, doubt started to creep its way into her mind.
When their eyes met images of deceitful lovers entwined in a passionate embrace flashed behind her eyes. Her mutinous mind reminding her why she was here. Her anger returned and the odium she felt for them now at boiling point.
Buffy could feel the cold metal of her pistol tucked into the back of her wet pants, a simple reminder to her that it was there. Buffy found comfort in its cold caress. The kind of comfort most people got from a lover’s embrace, or the supportive smile and absolute trust you find in a life long friend.
The cold metal pressed intimately against her bare skin was like a trusted friend, it was all she needed in a time like this.
She could hear Angelus droning on, his voice a mere buzzing in her ears, insignificant. Her mind focused on two things; the blonde man staring at her and the Codex wrapped in Drusilla’s twisted fingers.
Spike stared at the sight before him. She was soaked through; he had no doubt that she had run all the way here in the rain. He could see the drops of water coursing their way down her body, leaving glimmering tracks in their wake.
Her black leather pants and a red singlet clung desperately to her body. He saw the rise and fall of her chest as she heaved in angry breaths.
Buffy stared at him rage and revenge glittered gold in her emerald eyes. Beneath the stray tendrils of wet hair that clung to her face, he saw the promise of a punishment worse than death in her icy glare.
When her thinned lips split into a wide grin he swallowed hard, the poison in her smile sent chills along his spine. He had never seen her so pissed off.
In her peripheral vision, Buffy saw Drusilla trying to side step off the stage. Keeping her eyes locked with Spikes’ Buffy pulled her weapon from its resting place aiming it at Drusilla.
‘Move an inch and I will shot you Dogzilla’ the barely contained wrath in Buffy’s voice was not lost on the maniac. Drusilla froze in her place.
Angelus’ voice finally broke through the haze ‘Looky looky my little girls all grown up.’
He mocked in that really annoying condescending tone that he loved to use with women.
‘I will never be your girl.’ She ground out between clenched teeth.
He placed a hand over his heart. ‘You wound me lover.’
The sound of the gun being cocked echoed through the stillness of the theater. Drusilla turned wild eyes to Angelus
‘No Daddy the sunshine she can make it all bright, Bam! Flash! Too bright, too bright the light and we will burn.’
Angelus turned to Drusilla; he ran a long creepy finger along the length of her jawbone following the line down along her neck and into the crevice of her breasts. He licked his lips in anticipation.
‘She doesn’t have the balls to do it. Besides, ole’ Spike here will tame her if needed, that’s what we pay him for.’
Drusilla shuddered at Angelus’ touch; she locked eyes with the bleach-blond
‘Our William filled the sunshine with lies, pretty lies. Sweet Willy likes to play pretend, only sometimes he forgets who he is playing with.’
Drusilla spun in a tight circle, her insane giggles filling the theater. It was as though she had stepped out of the pages of an Insano’s R Us journal.
Angelus lips split into a malicious grin.
‘It was just the fun-est to watch the whole drama play out? Will my boy you have done me proud.’
Spike took a bow. It was as if he had just spoken the final words of an untold Shakespeare play to the masses, and the curtain was falling on a roaring crowd.
In an instant Buffy felt claustrophobic, the massive theater walls felt like they were closing in on her. Her vision tilted and her world spun, the last few months had been nothing more than a twisted melodrama played out for her benefit.
A play in which she was supposed to be the leading lady, but had never been given the script. How was she supposed to play the part without a script?
Her already breaking heart shattered. She was merely a game to him, a new part for him to play, the role of lover and confidant. He played it well, too well. Anger boiled in Buffy’s veins, rage filled her. All rational thought fled her mind. What happened next played out in slow motion.
Buffy pulled the trigger, a bullet whizzed through the air past Angelus hitting the side of his face ripping his cheek open to expose his jaw, lodging its self in the wall behind them. Drusilla dropped the Codexand fell to Angelus’ side. Her panic filled screams were no more than a muffled sound in the ringing in Buffy’s ears.
Buffy marched over to Drusilla; pistol-whipped her, effectually knocking her out. She bent down and snatched up the Codex when she stood she was face to face with Spike. The ex-lovers faced each other a thousand word spoken in a single look.
Buffy had the Codex gripped in her left hand and the gun in her right, aimed between Spikes eyes, her heart hammered in her chest, and her hands began to shake.
She wanted to shut the world out and forget for a moment the lies and deception. The misplaced trust and heart break. She wanted to get lost in the solace and warmth of her bed and let the tears she had denied fall freely.
However, more than anything else, she wanted to loose her self in Spike. She wanted to forgive him. Because no matter how much she struggled against it, she loved him, and he hurt her. She hated herself for letting it happen. She hated him for doing it to her. God she hated him because even now, after every thing, she still loved him.
The weight of the Codex in her hand reminded her of the mission. She sucked in a deep breath to steady her emotions. She prepared herself to make the ultimate sacrifice for the mission. Her mind now focused. She set her steely eyes on her enemy.
Spike stared deep into Buffy’s eyes he could read the heartbreak she tried to hide, he could see the tears she refused to let fall. Even with her world, crumbling down around her she stood strong and fearless.
She was passionate and unassailable, fragile, and vulnerable all at once. She was a warrior with a lover’s heart. An emotion deep with in the confines of his hardened heart stirred.
The desire to feel her silky skin beneath his fingers was too much for him to deny. As one lover would blindly reach out a comforting hand to their other, just as they had done countless times before, Spike reached out to her. Buffy flinched and pulled back.
That small gesture told Spike more than any word she could have uttered; it was over, they were finished. The impact of her reaction came with an onslaught of emotions His world spun almost off its axis and then came to a screaming halt. His legs felt like lead and jelly all at once. His heart stopped dead, his breath hitched.
The words “never again” echoed in his screaming mind, drowning out all other thoughts.
He would never see her smile again; never have her laughter warm his heart again; she would never loose herself in him again.
His once dead heart jerked to life. He could feel it pounding so hard against his rib cage as it hammered a frantic tune in his chest. He was in love with her.
The unyielding look of heartache in her eyes told him it was too little too late. Sadness filled his eyes, unshed tears shone in them making the blue a little brighter.
‘Buffy’ his voice thick as he tried to convey everything he needed to say with one word.
His voice washed over her, it would be the last time she would hear her name said like that. A solitary tear cut a path down her cheek she let it fall. It was the last one she would ever cry for him. A silent vow slipped through her lips.
The words “never again” echoed through her mind. She knew what she had to do. A deadly calm fell over her.
She cocked her gun.
squawks
05/18/17 04:16 am
pj! I remember wishing one of your stories would be finished seriously about a decade ago. Amazing. I just tried an old password I used to use and amazingly got in too. Memories!
pj
03/20/17 01:20 am
10 yrs later, i finally rem my username and password. Pari, you rock. Hope you are well.
Rabbit_moon1
12/23/16 01:12 pm
I donate every month. Please donate to keep this site up!
AudryDaluz1
10/06/16 08:34 am
Great post.
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:45 pm
And anyone else who loves this site, it's worth mentioning there's a nifty little "Donate" option just below the shout box here! ;)
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:43 pm
Just wanted to take a moment to thank Pari and all the mods for maintaining such a great site!
05/18/17 04:16 am
pj! I remember wishing one of your stories would be finished seriously about a decade ago. Amazing. I just tried an old password I used to use and amazingly got in too. Memories!
pj
03/20/17 01:20 am
10 yrs later, i finally rem my username and password. Pari, you rock. Hope you are well.
Rabbit_moon1
12/23/16 01:12 pm
I donate every month. Please donate to keep this site up!
AudryDaluz1
10/06/16 08:34 am
Great post.
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:45 pm
And anyone else who loves this site, it's worth mentioning there's a nifty little "Donate" option just below the shout box here! ;)
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:43 pm
Just wanted to take a moment to thank Pari and all the mods for maintaining such a great site!